4
Fritzi
The next morning, I find that the bathing grove has been transformed.
Moss-covered stones surround a narrow offshoot of the river that runs through the Well. Folding wood panels cordon this space off from others, dozens of candles now filling this little cove, their light adding pecks of flickering orange to the late afternoon sun that shines down through gaps in the trees. Strands of herbs have been hung between sapling branches, and the whole area smells of them, but tart as well, where some have been burned: spicy mint and bitter rosemary and floral lavender.
I inhale as deeply as I can, willing the scents to elicit the intended calm, but a knot holds in the bottom of my belly. One that tugs, and winds, and tightens as I stand just outside the entrance, holding a robe tight around my body.
Hilde gives up on a purple flower she’d been trying to weave into the plaits across my hair. “Scheisse, I never could figure out how to do things like this. Why did Cornelia give me this task?”
“Maybe it’s your test.” I force a smile for her. “Otto is busy abusing all of his muscles. You get to solve a complex hair problem. And I get to take a bath.”
She sighs heavily and starts in on the flower again. “Did I miss where I have to be involved in the bonding ceremony too? Because as much as I’ve come to like you, I don’t think I want to be a part of that.”
“That’s not what—why does everyone keep making jokes about it like that? As though I would be so crass as to talk about such things with my lover’s sister.”
Hilde gags. “Lover.”
My smile becomes truer. “My darling? My truest one? My tender—”
Hilde pats my cheek. Hard. “There. You’re finished and ready to be baptized.”
I cringe. “That’s not what this is.”
“You’re purifying in water. Cleansing from sin. Dedicating yourself to a deity.” Her tone is honestly curious. “How is it not?”
“This isn’t meant to dedicate me to anything. This is to get rid of negative energy and reset my internal balance.” It’s easy to recite the words Cornelia has been drilling into my head for days, why this is so important, as important as Otto jumping around a…waterfall? I had to have heard that incorrectly. “Andsinhas nothing to do with it. I have done nothing for which I should feel guilty.”
My gut thuds at that.
If the council knew where I got my true magic from, they would certainly disagree. Which is why it’s so important I adhere to these traditions, to their rules, so as not to arouse suspicion.
But that’s where my reticence comes from. Not in actually thinking I’ve done something wrong in connecting with wild magic, but in knowing that it will be a source of contention with the council.
Hilde cocks her head, a bewildered look falling over her. “I’m still not used to that,” she says softly.
I straighten my robe. “Used to what?”
“Not being ashamed.”
My eyes fly up to her.
I have gotten to know her well these past months. She’s only similar to Otto in moments like these, when she is serious. Most of the time, she is uncouth and loud in a way that blends all too well with my own natural state, to the point Otto frequently regrets having us both in his life. Especially when we team up against him.
But now, when she stares up at me, her eyes are all Otto’s, dark and sincere, and I can easily imagine her turning those same eyes heavenward in a cathedral, searching for answers in votive candle smoke.
I squeeze her shoulder. “Have I told you today that I’m glad my magic sent you here?” The errant spell that transported her to the Well so long ago is the reason for all of this, her presence here, mine, Otto’s.
She beams. Wide and pretty. “No. But I do like to hear how much you adore me, so go on, go on.”
My squeeze on her shoulder turns into a pinch, and she chirps. “I’ll let Brigitta be the one to properly fawn over you.”
Hilde blushes, and with a satisfied sigh, her eyes drift out. “And, oh, she is so verygoodat fawning.”
My turn to gag. “All right, truce on talk of our…exploits?”
Her smile turns devilish. “I don’t know. You did promise you’d give me all the details of that time you tried to woo the traveling merchant’s daughter in Birresborn.”
